DECEMBER 1, 1913 



colonies affected that we pay no attention 

 to it, and it causes very little trouble except 

 in a very few cases. 



Mr. Holmberg mentions cax'elessness in 

 treating foul brood. Carelessness is so 

 prevalent among beemen in handling foul 

 brood that it is better to burn every thing 

 diseased if but a few colonies are found. 

 Not long ago, in company with one of our 

 county apiary inspectors, I was going the 

 rounds on reinsioection work to see how 

 well diseased apiaries were cleaned up. We 

 came upon one alert young fruit-grower 

 who had about twenty colonies, and among 

 them a few cases of disease. He had the 

 government bulletins, and had studied them, 

 especially the one on " Treatment of Bee 

 Diseases," by Dr. Phillips. He had invest- 

 ed in a gasoline-torch for disinfecting, and 

 was following disinfection directions to the 

 letter; but it was right at the close of the 

 honey-flow, and an hour earlier he had been 

 called to dinner, leaving a diseased colony 

 untreated with the hive cover off, which he 

 had forgotten to put on. We came in time 

 to find a nice case of robbing going on while 

 he was out at the honey-house disinfecting 

 hive-bodies with the blue-tiame torch! He 

 undoubtedly profited by the experience, and 

 I mention the instance, thinking that it may 

 be helpful to some other earnest young bee- 

 keeper. 



MUCH PUSHING NECESSARY TO SECURE FOUL- 

 BROOD LEGISLATION AND APPrOT'RIATIONS. 



It is unfortunate that ' ■ ;..• (lid not se- 

 cure an appropriation foi vec. irspection, 

 as the law enacted is such a worthj' one for 

 the control of bee diseases. Prof. Wilmon 

 Newell, with his corps of inspectors, was 

 ready to do effective work. It should not 

 be left with the chief inspector to secure 

 legislation for beekeepers. The State and 

 local associations should work hand in hand 

 in this work. The writer, who is deputy 

 bee inspector in Colorado, under C. P. Gil- 

 lette, State Entomologist of Colorado, had 

 considerable to do with securing Colorado's 

 law for bee inspection with an appropria- 

 tion to carry on the work; but the real test 

 always has come when the bill is in the 

 hands of the finance committee of the Sen- 

 ate. The experience in securing the last law 

 will illustrate well what work needs to be 

 done. The bill had been drawn up and 

 introduced by Hon. O. C. Skinner, who was 

 speaker of the last House of Representa- 

 tives. Mr. Skinner was at that time and is 

 yet a beekeeper, owning several hundred 

 colonies. He is an active member of the 

 Montrose Beekeepers' Association. Mr. 

 Skinner introduced the bill in the house, and 

 his colleague. Senator Tobin. of Montrose 

 County, introduced the bill in the Senate. 



Mr. Skinner told me, when I took the bill 

 to him to be introduced, that there probably 

 would be some difficulty in getting it passed, 

 as it carried an appropriation of $2500 

 annually, but he said that with hard work 

 we could probably get it through. 



The beekeepers over the State were 

 urged to write their legislators, and most of 

 them were furnished with the names of their 

 own legislators in case they might not know 

 who their own representatives were. The 

 beekeepers were also urged to write to the 

 Governor. Governor Ammons is a farmer 

 and stockman himself, and is vitally inter- 

 ested in building up the agricultural inter- 

 ests of Colorado. In answering my letter, 

 asking him to do what he could for the bill, 

 he wrote me that he would sign it, and, 

 furthermore, stated that he would do all he 

 could to get it reported out favorably by 

 the finance committee. This I think he did; 

 but the finance committee had decided to let 

 this bill die a natural death in one of their 

 pigeonholes, along with many other bills. 

 About this time Prof. Gillette wrote me 

 ihat he doubted very much whether we 

 could secure any legislation carrying an 

 i'ppropriation, as the legislature was de- 

 termined to pass no new bills carrying ap- 

 propriations. 



I went to the telegraph office and sent 

 five or six telegrams to the presidents and 

 secretaries of our local beekeepers' associa- 

 tions over the State, and urged them to send 

 telegrams to their representatives and sena- 

 tors. I know that nearly all of these bee- 

 keepers did this. Mr. J. C. Matthews, of 

 Montrose, sent a telegram to Senator Tobin, 

 and also to Mr. Skinner, I believe. Now, 

 Mr. Tobin went to the finance committee 

 and told them that he had come for that 

 bill, and expected that it would be reported 

 out favorably, and he stayed until he got 

 the bill reported. But we didn't get the full 

 12500 annual appropriation. It was cut to 

 $1500 annually. The Governor signed the 

 bill as passed by the legislature, and now 

 the law is in effect. 



The beekeepers, if they will all stand 

 together and work hard at the right time, 

 can secure worthy recognition of their in- 

 dustry. The organization of the campaign 

 is the important part. There must be a 

 leader, who should be one of the officers of 

 the State Beekeepers' Association, who will 

 keep the mails hot telling the beekeepers 

 Avhen to write, and offering suggestions as 

 to what arguments to make. [Mr. Foster is 

 exactly right. If Entomologist Newell, of 

 Texas, had had the support of the beekeep- 

 ers of his State, as did Professor Gillette, 

 of Colorado, there would have been no lack 

 of an apiDropriation. — Ed.] 



